Ultranormal

  • Drupal Funstrations

    Can I just tell you how much fun Drupal is? It’s not fun in the traditional “Oh look mommy, a new toy” kind of way.\
    It’s fun in the frustrating “gotta beat the next level of this game, but that stupid monster keeps eating me”. I just set up another instance of Drupal for a little work experiment, and the taxonomy still gets me. If you’re writing a book, you probably don’t want to use a big nested taxonomy because you probably want to use the book modules method of nesting pages into chapters. But, if you want to use the forum module, you do want to create a big nested taxonomy. Drupal is sometimes very confusing. It doesn’s sport the best documentation, although the community is very helpful. There are some default UI elements for regular users that are less than intuitive, the same for the settings.

    This is the glory and the pain of using open source software. You have all this power to use it or change it however you want. But, you’re allowed no expectation of support or documentation and you might just hit a deadend with nowhere to go (for the new site, I ended up redoing the taxonomy three or four times until I got it “just so”). I haven’t had the time to learn PHP yet, so I can’t just go hack it apart and make it do what I want.

    And it’s not that I don’t like it. I really do (this internal site will be my second with it, you know about the first already). Drupal has some outstanding features right out of the box (the forums are awesome, and I really dig the books module). There are some really cool modules out there, provided by really nice people. It could use some… polish. Yeah, that’s the word I’m looking for. I’m sure it’ll happen, someday.

  • Oooh, Business Class

    So, my trip to France has been approved, and it looks like I’ll be flying Lufthansa, which has a gorgeous business class. Wow… Now, I just need to book the hotel, finish the grammar refresher, buy new shoes, and read a bunch of documents.

    I couldn’t be more excited. Really.

  • A Link To A Post

    I just posted some thoughts about primaries over at nonDependant. Spurred by Wes Clark’s decision to drop out and my guilt at changing my vote at the last minute. I voted for Edwards. Why? Because I knew Clark was in freefall, and that the only way to provide a foil to Kerry was to vote for number two. Edwards and Clark were stealing each others votes, and I knew that if Edwards was going to make it to the “it’s down to two” race, I would have to go with him. I feel guilty for it on one level, and am still questioning my decision.

    The primaries are supposed to be about voting your heart. You use your head in the general, and swallow whatever pride you have and vote for the lesser of two evils (OK, I didn’t do that in 2000, which I also feel a little guilty about). I had to go with my head and vote for the “next best thing” yesterday morning.

    I’m sorry, General Clark. I really like you, what you stand for, and hope you have a place in the next Administration. I hope you run for office again, and have better luck. You’re a national hero, and have my respect.

    To the General’s supporters, I’m sorry. I feel bad for you. You stood for a dream that you could help create a “new standard of leadership”, bring an outsider to the White House and change the empty rhetoric, lies and vacuous promises of the Washington machine. I’m sorry it didn’t work. It’s a good dream. It’s a worthy goal.

    Mr. Edwards, I hope you do something with my vote and take it somewhere important. You seem like a good man, a good father, and would make a good President. I hope your stump speech is as genuine as it sounds, because it’s damn good. It’s inspiring, and reaches for a better America for all of us. It embraces the best ideals of our country, and I can stand behind that.

    Honestly, I want the primaries to keep going for a while. I like watching the attention paid to the process. I like watching the numbers, and seeing the refinement of the candidates’ message that comes from constant campaigning. I hope that the Democrats take all the attention their getting and turn it into a win in November. Anyone running (OK, anyone but Sharpton and Dennis) would be better than Bush.

  • Lies, Lies and Damned Lies

    Lies, Lies, and Damned Lies. This President is a liar, plain and simple. Spin it however you want, Republicans. The man is liar, habitual, and serious. He’s not lying about marital infidelities. His lies are ruining our economy, putting our soldiers in danger needlessly, and are directly related to the deaths of over 500 American soldiers, and over 3,000 innocent Iraqi civilians.

    The man shouldn’t just lose the election. He should be impeached. His lies are dangerous, irresponsible, and are the basis for “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” I would consider leading our country to war under false pretenses, spurious evidence and apparently deliberate deception qualifies. Of course, I’m no lawyer, but the man is corrupt. You can’t have that clear an appearance of evil, and that many lies in one hour without suspecting to the point of official enquiry that there is actual corruption and wrongdoing there.

    Of course, it won’t happen. It should. If honestly, the President has nothing to hide and wants to know “the truth” or “the facts”, let’s get to them. Stop the deception. Stop the lies. Stop the evasion. Tell the truth, finally. Let the 9/11 commission do their job. Give them everything. Let the Iraqi Intelligence commission look into the use of the intelligence and not just the gathering. Give them subpoena power. If you’ve got nothing to hide, stop making it look like you’re trying.

  • My Sister, the Superstar

    First it was the front page of USA Today and several other papers, now my little sister is on the front page of the MIT Technology Review. Go read the article: Why Heather Can Write.

    And to think, she used to eat dirt…

  • Who I’m Voting For on Tuesday

    I’m sure you’re all on the edge of your seats over this one. I’ve talked about it ad nauseam since September when I decided I didn’t have to decide who to vote for right then. Now, I do. The VA primary is Tuesday, and I’ve finally made up my mind. Right this minute, I’m comfortable with it, but I reserve the right to change my mind before then.

    I’ve decided to vote for Wesley Clark. Why? Why not just vote for Kerry and be done with it? Because I don’t have to yet. I like Kerry, and I think he’ll make a fine President if/when he becomes the nominee. But, he’s an insider. He’s been in Washington for a very long time. He’s part of the machine. Honestly, I had a hard time not sticking with Dean. But, I’ve watched him as a candidate fall apart in the past week and a half. His stump speech doesn’t have the same spark it used to. He doesn’t have the passion I admired before, and I’ve realized that I really don’t agree with him as much as I do Clark or Kerry. I like Edwards too. He is one of the most engrossing speakers I’ve ever seen, and his stump speech is inspiring. But, there’s something about him I just don’t get yet, and until I figure it out, I can’t vote for him. I’m picking Clark because he’s a viable outsider. He’s a man outside of the Washington machine (as outside as anyone can get and still be viable as a Presidential candidate). He has military experience I respect, has sound economic plans (well, as far as I can tell – they make sense), and seems like a moderate who can get other moderates from both sides to work with him.

    So, there you have it, who I’m voting for and why. And unrelated to any of them, I haven’t seen anything about any of the candidates coming to Virginia next week. That disappoints me. I’ve only seen Dean in person and that was way back in August. I learned a lot at that rally, and would love to see one or two of the others in person. I don’t see any yet, but if anyone in Northern VA hears of anything, please let me know.

  • It’s Almost a Reality

    This may be where I’m staying in France: Hotel L’Ermitage du Riou. Holy crap, I’m really going to France!

    Last Saturday we made a trek to the local used book store, where I picked up a beat up French/English Dictionary and a French Grammar refresher. I also got biographies of Truman and Lincoln for the plane, a copy of Gray’s Anatomy for Max, a very cool Gray’s Anatomy coloring book, and Max got a couple books for himself. I’m excited. I have plane reservations, language, and almost hotel reservations. I have suitcases, will get plane snacks, an appetite, curiosity, and now need to go get some good walking boots and make sure I know where I put my passport.

    And after that comes Austin and SXSW Interactive, and the chance to meet a bunch of bloggers I’ve been reading for years, and see what everyone else is up to in the web world. I can’t wait!! Oh, and I’m all set for Austin. I have plane, hotel, car, etc all taken care of. Thanks to Senor Brown, I have dinner plans for Thursday night.

    Oh yeah… wait, I need to get back to work. It’s really hard to concentrate with all this travel on the horizon.

  • Joe Drops Out

    Joe drops out. I’m happy. Lieberman came off as a whiner and a scold during the campaign, and honestly, during the debates, sounded like a Republican. He just didn’t click with me, or with anyone I know. I feel bad for the folks who support him, but I’m glad the field’s narrowing. Now that Joe’s out, I think it’s time for Dennis and Al to look at the facts and drop out as well.

    Now if only we can get GW to drop out of the race too!

  • Flyin’ Here, Flyin’ There

    You’ll never guess where I’m going next week. No, really, you won’t. Give up? I’m going to France. Better yet, it’s not just France, it’s the Riviera. And the best part? It’s for work, so I won’t be paying for it (well, I’ll be paying for some of it, and then being paid back, but that’s a minor detail). Why am I going? That’s an excellent question. You are looking at the newest member of the W3C CSS Working Group, and I couldn’t be happier. It feels good to be involved (OK, I’m not really “involved” yet, but I will be), and to get out there in the world. I’m so used to working just within my own little world and peering out but not participating, that this should be a lot of fun.

    And I’m still going to Texas, then Northern California in August and November. At this rate, I’ll be a “premier” level frequent flier in no time. Yippee!!

  • Just Can’t Read Anymore

    You know, the post was disheartening enough, but to see the utter deflation in the comments is too much. I’ve posted about it before, but I’m too outraged/baffled/depressed to go look them up now. I had high hopes for the Dean campaign. I wanted it to be successful enough to show that we can change politics from the bottom up. I wanted it to show that you can beat corporate donations and cynical politicing with determination, small donors and honesty. It looks now like it was all a pipe dream. And, if it’s not a pipe dream, this is a horrible first example of the way to go.

    It looks like (and these are leaks and reports, so I could be all wrong in my interpretation here), that the operatives working for the campaign messed up, and big. They took this huge grassroots campaign and destroyed it with their giant egos, greed, and poor decision-making ability. It reflects poorly on Dean, not that he particularly did anything wrong, but he apparently picked the wrong people to deliver his message. Decision making, and being a good judge of character is an important characteristic in a President. It looks like Dean picked the wrong messengers, and it’s going to cripple his chances of being President.

    I have two weeks to decide who to vote for on 2/10. I’m no closer to that decision than I was a month ago. Part of it is that I like the top four, and all for different reasons. Part of it is I really, really, really want to vote for the guy who win in November. Dean doesn’t look like that guy anymore. Of the other three, I’m not so sure who has the best chance, and who I can really believe in.

    I’ll let you know what I decide… not that it matters all that much.